So apparently the Homie Whitney and I are not the only ones upset about the use of the word “negro” on the 2010 census. Check out this video of Director of the Census Bureau Robert Groves apologizing to a African-American (aka negro) caller on C-span’s Washington Journal.
Check the full article on Huffington Post by clicking the link below.
Okay it’s SUPER Important to fill out the census. How do we know? Because Kirin Kennedy with the League of Young Voters told us so a couple weeks ago in a previous post. However, like many folk who work on soul time (aka cp time) I waited till the last minute to fill mine out only to find out whoever created the census was even farther behind than me. If you are of African descent and already filled out the census, good for you, but I’m pretty sure you know what I mean when I say WTF is up with this Census form? Check out the homie Whitney and I filling out our 2010 census. FYI: we drop a few f-bombs so you may want to get some headphones if you are at work.
This winter the world was hit with a bundle of crazy snowstorms and natural disasters. Eric Sheptock, a homeless activist and writer in Washington, DC discusses how he and other homeless residents were impacted by the area’s record breaking snowfall this past February.
Check out the post and more insight from Eric Sheptock by clicking on the link below
2010 marks the 40th anniversary of the Environmental Protection Agency and for the first time in a long time that the EPA is on the J-O-B. One of the main reasons the EPA is getting it together, the Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. Checktheweather.net Video Blog Series “Word on the Concrete got a chance to get a few words with the Administrator before she went off to meetings on Capitol Hill.
Check out what she has to say about being the First African-American to head the Environmental Protection Agency. What she hopes for the future of going green. Plus a special message for the grassroots of America.
For more information on what’s going down at the EPA click here.
Also look out for future episodes of Word on the Concrete very soon….
Note: I am an environmental justice advocate so this is certainly not a break from the environmental movement. It is my realization that I have a responsibility to do some cultural brokering. I intend to offer alternative and relevant perspectives, not to divide. Consider this an acknowledgment of the socioeconomic, racial, political, psychological, and even spiritual challenges that need to be hurdled and taken head on in striving to “green” communities, oppressed and liberated alike. Since this piece is slightly creative, take the personal pronouns as me speaking from a group perspective informed and inspired by personal accounts and my ethnic studies.
I get it: the world is crumbling. Boo-hoo. Did you think my world was in tact before? Oh yes, this is going to be one of those cups of tea. I hope you like it hot. (more…)
Messiah Ramkissoon is more than just an entertainer. Three time Apollo champion and recipient of an Oprah Winfrey Angel Network scholarship, Messiah showcases his understanding of hood and international politics through the use of slick wordplay and exciting similes. On his day grind Messiah is a graduate of Howard University and a educator at Duke Ellington School of the Arts (the same high school Dave Chappelle attended).
This past weekend Check the Weather Co-founder, Kari “MisskGreen” Fulton sat down with the Trinidad born, Washington, DC based poet/emcee as he prepared to dive into promotion for his latest album “The Manual” and a string of benefit concerts in support of recovery efforts in Haiti. The two had an opportunity to chat about everything from guilt-trip donations, the near future of Haiti and why he loves the hood so much.
Also check below for a sneak peak of the official video for “Come Back”, the latest single off the Manual and Checktheweather Radio’s featured song!
**If you are in the DC area you can check Messiah out this Thursday January 21, 2009 (that means today!)Performing at the Hands For Haiti Benefit Concert featuring Wale, X.O. and many more. Tickets are available via ticketmaster.com click here to purchase!
For more information on Messiah and to cop his latest album, the Manual visit www.Allmessiah.com.**
What do you know about the Waxman-Markey American Clean Energy and Security Act? Right now the Senate and the World’s wealthiest countries are talking about this bill and what it could mean to fighting the drastic impacts of Climate Change worldwide. Checktheweather.net took a stroll through the parts of DC you’re not going to see when you watch political thrillers or come visit for a conference. Check out the latest episode of Word on the Concrete: H st. Corridor
Oh yeah! For those of you viewing this post on our mobile site, I’ll tell you one thing, folk were not too pleased to be uninformed!
Favorite quote:
“Maybe they should put posters up in the Black Community.”
Subscribe to our youtube Channel ChecktheweatherTV for real talk from real people on the Green Movement. Please send us your communities thoughts on Waxman-Markey by tagging them checktheweather on youtube. We will be letting our senators know, the people don’t want to feel left out and unaccounted when it comes to saving our world!
Yesterday, New York Times published an op-ed by 2002 Pulitzer Prize winner and noted author Thomas Friedman. The article titled “Just Do It” calls out the flaws of the ACES bill. Friedman author of “The World is Flat: A Brief History of the World” agrees with many scientists,economists and environmental journalist, Brentin Mock, that the ACES bill is weak and cannot afford to get any weaker. Friedman goes off in this op-ed calling out Republicans, President Obama and the American public for making this bill weak. Here’s a piece of what he had to say:
Attention all young Americans: your climate future is being decided right now in the cloakrooms of the Capitol, where the coal lobby holds huge sway. You want to make a difference? Then get out of Facebook and into somebody’s face.
We hear you Friedman and we here at Checktheweather.net have been hitting the concrete talking to real people about this “ACES” Climate Bill. Yesterday we posted a story asking a Rasta about Climate Change. Last night we went out to Horace and Dickie’s Chicken and Fish Carry Out in Northeast, Washington, DC and asked Dennis “Chico” Jackson what he felt about Climate Change, Michael Jackson and most importantly what he knew about the Waxman Markey ACES bill. Check out the video and let us know what you think. Oh and to Friedman, We are calling you out too. When’s the last time you did a story on what People of Color in America are doing to Green our communities and fight Climate Change? Looks like we need to take this dude on a toxic tour ASAP.
